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politicalbetting.com » Blog Archive » The big message from the Long-Bailey sacking is that Labour is Starmer’s party now
The big political news on most of the front pages is Starmer’s sacking from his shadow cabinet of the former leadership rival Long-Bailey for circulating what could be regarded as an antisemitic article.
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Might make for an interesting relationship with the Deputy Leader, RLB's housemate.
Usually you can see why politicians climb to the top, or near to the top, of the slippery pole. For example, Gove and Raab are slimy and repugnant stools, but I can just about understand why a Tory backbencher or member might vote for them. For a slimy, repugnant party, the qualities of slime and repugnance are both strong positives, so in that sense they might buy what they see on the tin. But Long-Bailey is just a total mystery to me. I just cannot see her USP to the Labour selectorate, let alone to the wider Labour-sympathetic bloke on the omnibus.
She comes over as a total vacuum. My only way of starting to even conceive of her as a FAV for leader of HM Opposition was to conclude that if she was the best the Labour Party has to offer then talent within the party had been so hollowed out that the organisation was firmly set for terminal decline. But luckily for Labour, they had Starmer. He ain’t no superstar, but he’s good enough, and up against The Great Charlatan, good enough is simply outstanding.
Labour are very, very lucky.
Now, turning to Richard Leonard... OMFG.
In terms of:
Say a less deadly strain of a virus also has a higher proportion of asymptomatic cases. A smaller proportion of infected people with this strain therefore get tested. The less deadly strain therefore becomes more prevalent, especially if chains of infection of the more deadly strain are broken by contact tracing.
I mean you'd perhaps expect to see this effect a bit without any testing, but wouldn't testing and contact tracing multiply it?
{On the other hand, could there theoretically come a point where too much testing would prevent the effect?}
Also, the ‘strains’ are very, very similar to each other, with maybe a base or two difference, and so far no one has turned up any strong evidence of differential infectiveness/severity.
That doesn’t mean it’s not possible; just unlikely on what we know so far.
https://ashpublications.org/blood/article/doi/10.1182/blood.2020007214/461106/Platelet-Gene-Expression-and-Function-in-COVID-19
There is an urgent need to understand the pathogenesis of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). In particular, thrombotic complications in patients with COVID-19 are common and contribute to organ failure and mortality. Patients with severe COVID-19 present with hemostatic abnormalities that mimic disseminated intravascular coagulopathy associated with sepsis with the major difference being increased risk of thrombosis rather than bleeding. However, whether SARS-CoV-2 infection alters platelet function to contribute to the pathophysiology of COVID-19 remains unknown. In this study, we report altered platelet gene expression and functional responses in patients infected with SARS-CoV-2. RNA sequencing demonstrated distinct changes in the gene expression profile of circulating platelets of COVID-19 patients. Pathway analysis revealed differential gene expression changes in pathways associated with protein ubiquitination, antigen presentation and mitochondrial dysfunction. The receptor for SARS-CoV-2 binding, ACE2, was not detected by mRNA or protein in platelets. Surprisingly, mRNA from the SARS-CoV-2 N1 gene was detected in platelets from 2/25 COVID-19 patients, suggesting platelets may take-up SARS-COV-2 mRNA independent of ACE2. Resting platelets from COVID-19 patients had increased P-selectin expression basally and upon activation. Circulating platelet-neutrophil, -monocyte, and -T-cell aggregates were all significantly elevated in COVID-19 patients compared to healthy donors. Furthermore, platelets from COVID-19 patients aggregated faster and showed increased spreading on both fibrinogen and collagen. The increase in platelet activation and aggregation could partially be attributed to increased MAPK pathway activation and thromboxane generation. These findings demonstrate that SARS-CoV-2 infection is associated with platelet hyperreactivity which may contribute to COVID-19 pathophysiology.
* The AN90 test refers of course to the first 90 seconds of an interview with the said politician by Andrew Neil, this being the time usually required to totally demolish the particular case being argued.
Warning over plans for new Royal Navy aircraft carriers
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-53186611
As with most organisations with fundamentally poor ethos and performance, the core problem was the leadership and in particular the flawed recruitment and HR culture. And the ultimate bosses, the Scottish Government, had clearly decided, probably correctly, that poor policing was too low down the list of priorities to be worth expending capital and energy on.
I now think they need to reassess their priorities. The policing in Glasgow recently is a national disgrace. The Loyalist Defence League and the National Defence League are fascist front organisations. Nothing more, nothing less. And it is now increasingly clear that they have very, very good friends within Police Scotland. No country can tolerate this situation. The SNP and Green leaderships can now be in zero doubt: they need to act and act now.
Police Scotland accused of 'letting fascist thugs run wild' at Glasgow protests
https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/police-scotland-accused-letting-fascist-22253214.amp
That Boris Johnson was too terrified to speak with a bog-standard political journalist says everything about The Great Charlatan’s true abilities. He cannot withstand even the mildest scrutiny. A real journalistic talent would rip him a new one.
The only thing to be said in Neil’s favour is that he is a Paisley Buddy, which always gives anyone a favourable start in my books.
Now, turning to another wildly overrated, ahem, “journalist” Laura Kuenssberg... OMFG.
Let's hope Leicester or Chelsea manage to finish 3rd.
It's a good move on Long-Bailey.
The whole scheme was of course just another bribe in the transactional thinking crippling Scottish Unionist strategy. A Trident billion here, an aircraft billion there. The taxpayer meanwhile is getting royally screwed; not to mention the *proper* armed forces, who are consequently stymied.
And the mind-boggling thing is that the bribery self-evidently doesn’t even work. Argyll & Bute, West Dunbartonshire, Govan, southern Fife: all still firmly SNP. The Unionist flunkies couldn’t even score with an open goal and no keeper, managing in December to even lose a south Fife seat to the SNP when the SNP didn’t even have a candidate standing. That is taking BritNat incompetence to a whole new level.
https://www.bbc.com/news/politics/constituencies/S14000041
(The NAO “highlighted concerns over missing key elements such as aircraft and support ships.“ Ho ho.)
Childbirths drop 10.4% in April as population decline looms
http://m.koreatimes.co.kr/pages/article.asp?newsIdx=291799
The number of babies born in Korea dropped 10.4 percent in April from a year earlier, in the latest sign underscoring a looming population decline.
According to Statistics Korea Wednesday, 23,420 babies were born in April, compared with 26,151 in April 2019.
It marks the lowest number of newborns for any April since the state agency started keeping records in 1981.
Meanwhile, the number of people who died increased 3.3 percent to 24,628.
All this indicates that the country is evidently on track this year to reporting its first natural population decline.
Sorry I can't finish that sentence.
Cyclefree, I and many others have repeatedly made the point that many people's livelihoods are not viable socially distanced. To be dismissive of this as HYUFD is with an attitude of "football can be played behind closed doors so can theatres etc" is utterly ignorant and dismissive and will if followed through without any support lead to the destruction of people's livelihoods.
The Premier League is an exception because they make their money so much more from the TV cameras than they do from just people in the stadia. They are more comparable with actors on TV shows filming behind closed doors than they are actors in live theatre normally playing to an audience without a camera.
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/us/coronavirus-spread.html?action=click&module=Spotlight&pgtype=Homepage
More generally you’re probably right.
Football (in general) is not being played behind closed doors.
Premier League and Championship football in specific is.
Suggesting that theatres can follow the example of football means looking at theatres in general and football in general.
Plus birth rates generally tend lower during economically difficult times.
Whether the ‘Bournemouth effect’ of release will send them up above normal levels in 9+ months’ time remains to be seen.
The other risk I can see for Starmer here is that if eg he sacked RLB but doesn't sack a frontbencher or another member of his team who calls for Churchill's statue etc to come down etc etc, it leaves him open to the charge of double standards or charges it shows he is secretly sympathetic to the statement.
She was completely useless anyway.
At least Labour didn’t go as far as the LibDems and actually put an unsuitable woman in charge.
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/massive-explosion-reported-east-of-irans-capital/1890356
This may just be a pair of tragic accidents. After all, Iran is in a shambles at the moment both through the devastation of Coronavirus, through sanctions, through years of corruption and neglect and because its one effective Government minister was assassinated by the Americans earlier this year.
However, there was also an attack on an Iranian militias in Iraq last night:
https://www.timesofisrael.com/13-pro-iran-fighters-held-for-anti-us-rocket-attacks-iraqi-officials-say/
If it is a coincidence, the timing is to put it mildly unfortunate. The Jerusalem Post has juxtaposed the two and I don’t think they will be alone.
https://www.jpost.com/breaking-news/explosion-reported-near-tehran-report-632864
https://twitter.com/sahilkapur/status/1276324083421122560
Government compulsorily purchases land at 2-3x price without planning permission
Government auctions off same land with planning permission
That way the existing landowner gets a significant but smaller windfall, but it both raises tax revenue and takes out the corruption from the process.
It would likely cause the Tories to split too.
He won't get a majority anyway but PR would give them extra seats in Scotland and ensure support from the LibDems so he could be our next (coalition) PM.
The headlines must be causing cries of joy at Labour HQ.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-53181525
"A study of European children with Covid-19 suggests deaths are extremely rare.
Only four of 582 children died, two of whom had underlying health conditions.
Symptoms were generally mild and some who tested positive had no symptoms at all, but about one in 10 children needed intensive care."
...
"More than half of the children studied were admitted to hospital, and 8% needed treatment in intensive care."
Or, to put it another way, those in younger demographics (children especially) aren't hugely less likely to need hospitalisation or intensive care, but are far more likely to recover with help.
Which isn't "unaffected" or "zero effect," especially not if the numbers infected ever spike high enough to swamp the NHS (because then we'd be testing what happens to you if you need to be hospitalised but don't get that help)
When briefly hospitalised with C-19 the other half was given anti-coagulants as a precaution. We were surprised at the time because she is generally exceptionally fit and healthy. This little extract helps explain why the drugs were applied.
She was fortunate to be treated at The Royal Free Hospital, which has been very much at the front line and offered first class treatment.
They did a poll and something like 90% of RLB's voters would have swapped to Corbyn if he had stood again. Luckily for us all, Starmer would have still won in a near landslide.
I don't think people get it, Starmer has a mandate to do whatever he likes, he got a stonking vote in the leadership elections and he is now flexing his muscles. It's not Corbynism again or Blairism again, it's Starmerism.
As with Cummings Boris's inability / unwillingness to act results in Boris becoming the actual story.
Nixon managed 520-17 in 1972, with again only Massachusetts and DC going to McGovern.
James Monroe was returned unopposed in 1820.
In other news https://twitter.com/nowthisnews/status/1276370351308578818
Mr Hanky deserves a vote!
https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/25/politics/trump-administration-obamacare-supreme-court/index.html
I'm sure taking away people's healthcare will play well for him.
Time for someone to make a complaint?
I'm surprised he is still there.
It's one thing to abandon a sinking ship, another to resign just before the launch.
If the Conservative justices on the SC had any moral consistency they would throw this out saying that if Congress wanted to repeal Obamacare then they should pass a law repealing it.
And on the other side I don't suppose 1% of the population knows who Long Bailey is, even less that she's been sacked.
OK its a political site but plenty on here seem able to convince themselves black is white.
What problem is that proposal designed to address?
I agree that existing CPO powers are extensive, which iirc (not my absolute specialist subject) are quite draconian? See for example how Camden used them in in the late 70s.
I think there is quite a lot of stuff in the postwar planning legislation which is quite powerful if used.
My main issue there would be question whether that will address the problem.
Are you sure? Not even once?
Despite people wanting Cummings to be news, he isn't. And the ongoing story will be the economy, which millions are unaware of as they cook bbqs whilst furloughed.
For smaller theatres and smaller football clubs they have much smaller crowds and audiences so as lockdown eases will be back before the biggest football clubs and theatres anyway and of course can still benefit from furlough until October